{"id":9609,"date":"2011-11-28T10:30:48","date_gmt":"2011-11-28T15:30:48","guid":{"rendered":"\/news_blogs\/john\/?p=9609"},"modified":"2024-06-24T14:45:20","modified_gmt":"2024-06-24T18:45:20","slug":"strategic-planning-that-will-amaze-jesus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cccc.org\/news_blogs\/john\/2011\/11\/28\/strategic-planning-that-will-amaze-jesus\/","title":{"rendered":"Faith and Risk: Strategic Planning That Will Amaze Jesus!"},"content":{"rendered":"
This entry is part 4 of 18 in the series Faithful Strategy Development<\/a><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n

How much risk<\/strong> are you prepared to accept for your ministry based on faith<\/strong> that God will provide? Do you have big faith that God<\/strong> will provide and then<\/em> you act? Or do you have big faith that God will provide when<\/em> you act? There is a fine line between having the faith to trust God and being presumptuous in testing God. The practical issue is how much we factor God into our strategic plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a sermon<\/a> I heard in Sunday School, Andy Stanley made the point that there is only one time in Scripture that it says Jesus was amazed, and it was the big faith of a Roman centurion, of all people, that amazed him!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, \u201cTruly I tell you, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.”<\/em><\/p>\nMatthew 8:10<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

A Personal Challenge<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Stanley challenges us asking, “What would your life be like if you knew for sure there is a God who is all powerful, who knows you and has promised never to leave you nor forsake you? What if you had perfect peace and no fears or anxiety about anything?” What would we dare try for the sake of Christ? What might we do that would demonstrate a faith that could amaze Jesus?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Ministry Challenge<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

What would it look like if our ministries assumed no limitations that God couldn’t easily overcome? What if we decided to trust God for the things that keep us from daring to do all that we can dream of? If we believed God could provide the “if onlys” that we are wishing for? Better yet, what if we prayed for them? What if the exploits of our ministries demonstrated a faith that would amaze Jesus just like the centurion’s did? What if…?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Planning Challenge<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

What if our strategic plans<\/strong> required divine<\/em> rather than human<\/em> capacity? What if our plans were so big, so bold, so far-reaching<\/em> that we’d have to assign responsibility for executing parts of them to the Lord?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If we can complete the plan ourselves, I’m sure God will allow us to do it ourselves. But maybe he wants us to plan something so stupendous and awe-inspiring that it gives him a unique role to play. The Bible is full of stories of how God worked through individuals to accomplish great things. What if we inserted into our plans something that only God could do? That means, of course, that our plans will be unrealistic. Would a staff be bold enough to recommend such a plan? Would a board be daring enough to approve such a plan? Just wondering!!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Are we:<\/p>\n\n\n\n